Device for pneumatically controlling the closing of a motor-vehicle,tram carriage window and the like



Aprll 1969 G. DELLEDONNE DEVICE FOR PNEUMATICALLY CONTROLLING THE CLOSING OF A MOTOR-VEHICLE, TRAM CARRIAGE WINDOW AND THE LIKE Filed Feb. 6, 1967 S R E u o w M m w u in w A a V 0 M p M 6 United States Patent Int. Cl. Ef '15/00 US. Cl. 49280 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A device for automatically controlling the closing of a motor vehicle or tramcar window or the like, characterized in that the movements of the movable sash frame carrying the glass in the upper half of the window port or aperture are pneumatically effected, the device also including a locking assembly for stopping the movable frame at any desired position.

This invention relates to a pneumatic device by which a window of a motor vehicle, tramcar or the like can be wholly or partially closed by locking the movable frame carrying the glass at any desired position.

It is the main object of the invention to provide a device of the above character which is reliable and noiseless, readily operable and of simple and cheap construction.

A further object of the invention is to provide a device of this kind whose operation requires less compressed air from the reservoir which the vehicle is provided with.

A still further object of this invention is to provide a device requiring a minimum of maintenance.

These and other objects, which will be apparent as the following description proceeds, are attained by the device according to the present invention, such a device being characterized in that the displacements of the movable sash-frame carrying the glass forming the upper half of the window are pneumatically effected, the device also including a lock assembly adapted to stop the movable frame at any desired position.

The accompanying drawing shows by way of nonrestrictive example an embodiment of the present invention, and more particularly:

FIG. 1 is a front view, partially broken away, of a window incorporating the device according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged sectional view of a detail for an upright of the fixed frame;

FIG. 3 is a front and partially sectional view of the lock assembly forming part of the present device;

FIG. 4 is a cross-section of the assembly in FIG. 3 taken along line 44 of said figure.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, it will be appreciated that the window incorporating the device according to the present invention and which may be of any quadrangular shape is provided with a fixed frame 3, which at the lower portion firmly holds the glass 4 forming the lower half of the window. A sealed chamber 8 of a circular cross-section extends around the lower half of the fixed frame 3 and two hollow pistons 9 are sealingly slidable within the vertical sections of said chamber, each of said pistons having its bottom 11 at the top. A slidable seal is provided by gaskets 10.

A second chamber 18 extends around the upper half of the fixed frame, the internal cross-sectional dimensions thereof being larger than those of chamber 8.

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Pistons 9 move upwardly into the vertical sections of this chamber 18 along the uprights of the upper half of the fixed frame 3.

A slot in the vertical section of each chamber 18 permits an arm 7 on piston 9 to slide vertically.

Such an arm 7 projecting from each piston 9 connects said piston 9 at its bottom 11 to the movable frame 5 carrying the glass 6, said frame 5 forming a movable sash in the upper half of the window.

The projecting arm 7 ends in a fork and is connected to the movable frame 5 through a pin 5a projecting from the latter. The end of a return spring 12 is connected internally to the bottom 11 of each piston 9, the other end of said spring being anchored externally of the mouth of said piston 9 to a pin 12 in the frame 3 positioned transversely of chamber 8. A conduit 27 is adapted to convev compressed air from a reservoir of the vehicle or car into chamber 8. Between conduit 27 and chamber 8 a valve controlled by push-button 26 controlling entry of air in said chamber 8 is inserted. A valve, controlled by push-button 25, is adapted to outwardly exhaust the compressed air in chamber 8 through a conduit (not shown). By operating on push-button 25, release of the lock assembly also forming part of this device and particularly shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 is also controlled as hereinafter described.

Said lock assembly designated as a whole at 30, is substantially within the horizontal section of chamber 18 of the fixed frame 3 and includes a finger 31 pivoted at 32 to a support 33 integral with frame 3 and connected through a cable 34 to an overriding element 28, which is connected in any suitable manner to the push-button of valve 25 exhausting the air from chamber 8; cable 34 travels within chamber 18, hence within the groove of a pulley 35, the axis of which is arranged transversely of chamber 18 adjacent an upper angle of frame 3 and then within a peripheral channel 41 around the frame 3.

Lock assembly 30 also includes a rack 36, slidable Within the upper horizontal section of cavity 41 and having an end connected through a cable 38 to bottom 11 of one of said pistons 9 and the other end connected to an end of a return spring 39, also accommodated within cavity 41 and the other end of which is anchored by a pin 37 to frame 3 at an end of the upper horizontal section of said cavity 41.

Cable 38 runs within said channel 41 into the groove of a pulley 40, the axis of which is positioned transversely of cavity 41 adjacent the other upper corner of frame 3.

A latch 43 is pivoted by pin 42 on support 33, said latch 43 being provided with an extension 43a, which is engaged by finger 31 to disengage the pawl 43b from the teeth of the rack 36 against the force of a spring 44.

The operation of the device according to the present invention is as follows:

Upon pressing push-button 26, the valve being controlled thereby Will connect the inlet conduit 27 for the compressed air with chamber 8, and as a result, the compressed air will urge the hollow pistons 9 upwardly by first sliding them in the vertical sections of chamber 8 and then in the vertical sections of chamber 18.

The greater the amount of air that is being introduced into chamber 8, namely the longer the push-button 26 is pressed, the higher the pistons 9 will ascend. For simplicity let it be assumed that pistons 9 have reached the upper ends of their strokes. The movable frame 5 connected thereto through arms 7 and carrying glass 6 will have reached its uppermost position corresponding to the complete closing of the window, as shown in FIG. 1.

When it is desired to open the window, by completely or partially lowering the movable frame 5 carrying the glass '6, pushbutton 25 is pressed so that the valve con trolled thereby will cause the whole or part of the com- 3 pressed air in chamber 8 and pistons 9 to discharge outwardly.

The longer the push-button 25 is pressed, the greater will be the outflow of air and hence the further will be the downward movement of pistons 9 (drawn downwardly by springs 12) and of the frame 5 carrying plate glass 6.

Frame 5, whatever may be the position thereof, is locked through pistons 9 by the lock assembly also forming part of this device and designated as a whole at 30. When at inoperative position, said assembly will assume the position shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, that is the locking position. In fact, upon operation of spring 44, pawl 43b of latch 43 engages any of the notches of rack 36 and accordingly said rack 36 cannot move; since it is connected through cable 38 with piston 9, also the latter and the movable frame 5 cannot be moved. When push-button 25 is pressed, which push-button controls the lowering of the movable frame 5 in conjunction with plate glass 6, as stated above, said push-button will also cause tensioning of cable 34 through the overriding element 28, which is connected to push-button 25. Tension of cable 34 will cause the finger 31 to rotate about pivot 32 so that, owing to the action of finger 31 on the extension 43a of latch 43, the latter will-be rotated about pivot 42 against spring 44, and thus the pawl 43b thereof will release the rack 36.

As long as push-button 25 is pressed, rack 36 can move freely as well as pistons 9 and frame 5.

When pressure on push-button 25 is released, lock assembly 30 assumes again the inoperative position at which latch 43 engages rack 36 at any notch thereof and, as a result, the above-mentioned locking is restored.

It is to be noted that when push-button 25 is pressed, the rack is free to move horizontally for a length equal to the vertical stroke of pistons 9. As a result, the lower said pistons and hence frame 5 are, the closer the notch engaged by the latch 43 will be to the left end of rack 36.

It is also to be noted that when push-button 26 is pressed and hence pistons 9 ascend in accordance with the above statement, rack 36 will be drawn to its end of stroke position, that is to the left, by return spring 39.

This movement is possible since the notches of rack 36 have sloped sides, which are parallel to the sloped plane of pawl 43b.

Also during the raising of frame 5 and plate glass 6 the locking device 30 will not oppose such movement before pistons 9 are actuated by opening the valve 26, but will immediately oppose it as soon as said raising stops. Frame 5 is therefore locked in any desired position regardless of whether such position is reached by ascending or by descending.

What is claimed is:

1. A device for controlling the sliding movement of the sash frame of a motor-vehicle or tramcar window or the like in a stationary window frame, said device comprising a sealed chamber of circular cross-section extending around the lower half of the frame and having parallel end portions in the sides of said frame, an elongated pist s alingly slidable into and out of the parallel end portions, a second chamber extending around the upper half of said frame and having inverted parallel end portions positioned in alignment with the end portions of the sealed chamber to receive the two pistons during their movement out of the sealed chamber, the inverted parallel end portions being slotted along their lengths adjacent the movable window, a horizontal arm carried 'by the upper end of each piston and extending through one of the slots to engage an edge of the window to raise or lower the same, air inlet and exhaust valves for admitting or exhausting air into or out of the sealed chamber, a slidable rack with inclined teeth in the middle of the second chamber, a flexible cable connecting one end of the rack with the upper end of one of the pistons, a coiled spring connected to the other end of said rack, a pawl in position to engage the teeth of said rack, and means including a flexible cable connected to the exhaust valve to release the pawl from the rack.

2. The device of claim 1, in which the pistons are hollow, each piston having in it a coiled tensile spring Whose free end is anchored to a fixed point in the sealed chamber.

3. The device of claim 1, in which the pawl is springpressed and is pivoted on a transverse axis in the middle of the second chamber and has an extension at its free end that is engaged by the pawl releasing means.

4. A device for controlling the sliding movement of the sash frame of a motor-vehicle or tramcar window or the like in a stationary window frame, said device comprising a sealed chamber of circular cross section contained in the lower half of the stationary window frame, a second chamber contained in the upper half of said stationary frame and of larger cross section than the sealed chamber, an elongated piston sealingly slida'ble in each end portion of the sealed chamber and movable into the ends of the second chamber, the end portions of the latter being longitudinally slotted, a laterally projecting arm on the upper end of each piston extending through one of the slots to engage an edge of the sash frame to raise or lower the window, and a locking assembly in the stationary frame and extending into the second chamber for stopping the movable frame in any desired position.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 546,854 9/1895 Holbrook et al 49361 1,055,567 3/1913 Stiver et al 49-36l X 2,067,106 1/ 1937 Tashjian et al. 49-280 FOREIGN PATENTS 487,893 6/ 1938 Great Britain.

DAVID J. WILLIAMOWSKY, Primary Examiner.

J. KARL BELL, Assistant Examiner.

US. Cl. X.R. 49-360 

